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Horror News Network’s Ten Best Horror Movies of 2019

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Welcome to Horror News Network’s Ten Best Horror Movies of 2019, a series where our staff writers offer their top three picks of the year, which are then calculated using the data gathered to compile a ranked ultimate top ten list of 2019.  Each entry below contains excerpts from the staff members who included each film in their personal top three individual picks.  Some of the choices were clear cut, and some ties had to be broken, but what you have before you represents many of the best horror films of the year. read more

Horror News Network’s Best Horror Movies of 2019: Christine’s Top 3 Picks

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SPOILERS AHEAD…

It’s that time of year again where we here at Horror News Network like to pick our top horror movies. Being tasked with a “Top Three,” for 2019, a year where there was no shortage of horror, was not easy. However, after doing so, I noticed the one commonality amongst these films is that they all featured relatable and strong characters.  When characters are brought to life, and fans can connect with them and are actually invested in their well-being. This makes the film scarier, more enjoyable and the viewing experience more worth the time. To detail my choices, I may disclose some spoilers, so beware and enjoy. read more

Jordan Peele’s ‘Us’ Coming to Universal Studios Halloween Horror Nights

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Not to be outdone by yesterday’s Creepshow maze announcement out in Hollywood, Universal Orlando and Universal Hollywood just announced a haunted house based on Jordan Peele’s Us for this year’s Halloween Horror Nights events.

According to Universal Orlando’s official HHN’s website, attendees “…will walk through the Wilson family beach house and Santa Cruz Pier, where you might spot a familiar character outside of the Fun House. You’ll also venture through the unnerving tunnels that stretch for miles deep below America and come face-to-face with “The Tethered” – a group of terrifying doppelgängers of every living man, woman and child in the country. You’ll quickly discover that you are your own worst enemy.” read more

Buy / Wait / Rent: June 2019 Blu-Ray Releases

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We sift through the new release heap so you don’t have to!

Welcome to Horror News Network’s Buy / Wait / Rent, a monthly article devoted to the most highly-anticipated horror releases on blu-ray. Here you will find the best home video releases of each month, along with our opinion on whether each film is a must-own on the first day of release, something you should wait to buy until it goes on sale, or something you’re better off renting for a one-time watch. And now, on to the notable new releases of June 2019! read more

“Non-Horror People Doing Horror Things”: Horror News Network Staff Discusses Comedians Making Horror Movies (Video)

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In this video from Horror News Network, Mike Simonetta, Mark McCurley and Larry Dwyer sit down to discuss the rash of comedians (and other celebs) getting involved in making horror films. Is it good for the genre? Which comedian is the latest to get involved?

Check out our thoughts on the subject below and be sure to subscribe to our channel to be updated on all Horror News Network videos!

‘Hellboy’ Burned at Weekend Box Office

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Much to the chagrin of Hellboy fans, Neil Marshall, David Harbour, and Mike Mignola (to say nothing about the financial stake holders at Lionsgate and Summit Entertainment), the much-hyped Hellboy reboot failed to deliver at the box office, or in the eyes of critics and fans.

Expectations were gauged as cautiously optimistic for the latest adventures of Dark Horse Comics “Big Red” (especially when it was clear that Hellboy would be entering a crowded scene with the continued success of Shazam, Us, Captain Marvel, and last week’s Pet Sematary remake), but no one involved could have prepared for the anemic box office returns, as the film earned only an estimated $12 million in its first weekend of release. read more

‘Pet Sematary’ Climbs into Second Place at Weekend Box Office, ‘Us’ Passes $150 Million Mark

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The pulse for Pet Sematary has been running high over the past few months (and the film delivered a second place finish at the weekend box office to the tune of $25 million), but  just like the optimism of Dr. Louis Creed, the end result may not be what Paramount expected.

Pet Sematary’s debut is a healthy one for a horror remake, but all of the analytics associated with the film point to a sharp decline in ticket sales next week.  Sematary’s Rotten Tomatoes score has steadily fallen from the mid-80s to a current score of 61% fresh.  While this is an admirable number for any horror film, the fan metrics are more disturbing.  Only 49% of fans on Rotten Tomatoes liked the film (according to their Audience Score) and film-goers polled by Cinemascore gave the remake an ultra low C+.  With Hellboy opening next week, followed quickly by The Curse of La Llorona weeping into theaters two weeks later, Pet Sematary could easily drop 65% at next week’s box office, signaling an early exit from theaters. read more

Jordan Peele’s ‘Us’ Dominates Weekend Box Office

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Us, Jordan Peele’s follow-up to his breakout hit Get Out, dominated the weekend box office, raking in an estimated $70 million in ticket sales.  Peele’s sophomore effort took in more than twice as much as Get Out (which debuted with a 33 million dollar haul) and with such a healthy start, Us should be able to come close to what Peele’s original foray into the horror genre generated back in 2017.

While Us’s box office is certainly impressive, as it is one of the highest grossing original horror films of all time after only one weekend, it may have a hard time sustaining the momentum and word-of-mouth that Get Out capitalized on.  Us has been an unabashed hit in the eyes of critics (with a 94% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes), but audiences seem to like, but not love the picture.  When examining the metrics associated with audience reactions,  ticket buyers gave Us a 70% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a lukewarm CinemaScore of B. read more

‘Us’: The Horror News Network Review

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This review contains spoilers.

Get Out was a smash hit on all metrics. The movie earned $255 million on a $4.5 million budget and it wowed casual fans, horror aficionados, and stuffy critics alike due to its expert blend of tried and true horror tropes and an adept level of social commentary that ties the picture together. Get Out also solidified writer/director Jordan Peele as one of the premiere horror storytellers of our time after a long and successful career in comedy. His well-deserved Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay broke barriers for an institution which typically rewards standard drama storytelling over specialized genre fare, and it drew even more attention to his knack for threading symbolism and allegory through a tightly constructed, self-contained horror story. Throughout the pre-release hype for Us, audiences were constantly reminded that this movie would have an even greater emphasis on horror than Peele’s freshman outing, and the film’s trailers expertly presented the terrifying tropes of the home invasion, the fear of the other, and ghastly sharp objects front and center. All of this build up led audiences to believe that Us would contain- above all- a great horror narrative. What we ended up with- however- is a movie that relies much more heavily on allegory than story, and the story suffers as a result… even in spite of phenomenal performances by a stellar ensemble cast.   read more

HNN Staff Discuss What to Expect in 2019

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The upcoming year is shaping up to be quite a significant one for horror fans, with numerous film and television projects scheduled to premiere across many different platforms.  From Pet Sematary to It: Chapter Two to yet another promising Jordan Peele production, there is reason for both optimism and skepticism within the genre.

Join HNN’s Christine, Larry and Sean as they discuss and critique what to expect in 2019.

Visit our YouTube channel (and the video below) for the entire episode, and check out our Patreon page for even more exclusive videos and content that you can’t get anywhere else (https://www.patreon.com/horrornewsnetwork). read more